Re: A Few Standard Folders [Re: Structure in $HOME]

From: Sean Middleditch <elanthis awesomeplay com>

To: desktop-devel-list gnome org

Subject: Re: A Few Standard Folders [Re: Structure in $HOME]

Date: 14 Jan 2003 09:57:25 -0500

On Tue, 2003-01-14 at 00:10, Todd Kulesza wrote:
> Seth Nickell wrote:
> > And who has to set the GConf key? (Serious question, not trying to throw
> > stones) Is your suggstion that to get a localised desktop, non-English
> > speakers are expected to go set 5 or 6 "folder names" to be folder names
> > in their native language rather than English? Or would they
> > automatically be set this way if you login for the very first time in a
> > non-English locale? Or would they automatically get set whenever you
> > login to a non-English locale?
>
> To keep this simple, I'm just going to use "Documents" as an example
> folder, but the idea would apply to any default folder we add.
>
> This may be pure crack, but what if, on each login, GNOME checks for the
> existance of "Documents" in the user's home directory by comparing a
> list of translations for "Documents". If it finds a match that's not in
> the user's current locale, and no "Documents" folder is found in the
> current language, it renames the folder based on the user's current
> language. Then we have one GConf key to toggle this behaviour, since
> obviously some people may not want it. This way, no matter what
> application the person uses, that folder will show up with the correct
> name. GNOME, KDE, Xlib, terminal apps, whatever--they'll all work.
>
> I agree with you that most users won't care what language a folder is
> displayed in. I think they'd see it would make perfect sense, based on
> their language selection: everything else on the desktop is translated,
> so why not generic folder names as well?
Ugh - no offense, but renaming the folders has to be the worst
suggestion yet. There are going to be people who use non-gnome apps
with default download directories, or using shell scripts, etc. If
we're going to force our ideas of default directories on people, we at
least need to consider how much it's going to break their setup.
A gconf key is probably the best idea I've seen yet - when user first
logs in, the gconf key will be the system default, which could be
nothing; a translated "Documents" directory is made, the gconf key set,
end of story.
And this whole issue just proves how the UNIX file system sucks, and why
we need to abstract it behind URIs so often. :P
If we *do* add default folders, tho, they should also be given custom
icons. I don't mean folder icons with emblems, but very clearly and
unerringly identifiable icons. If all my folders are translucent blue,
and I have one that is a different shade of blue with what looks like
papers inside of it, it might clearly stand out that it's my Documents
folder. Ths icon shouldn't be changeable by any means other than icon
theme, so users don't screw up the desktop.
And, if this folder is going to exist in $HOME/, please let us have a
way of hiding it on the desktop (for people who use $HOME as their
desktop), or of removing it completely.
A control center capplet for "Standard Document Locations" would also be
a must, I think.
>
> Todd
>
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--
Sean Middleditch <elanthis awesomeplay com>
AwesomePlay Productions, Inc.